Overprotected
by VanillaSlash
Summary: Natsuki could feel herself flush as their hands ran over every part of her body-checking for 'other injuries.' It was times like this that indicated just how helpless they thought her... not that Natsuki minded. Slight column!Shipping 1 2 3 5


**Fic**: Overprotected

**Rating**: T—because you know you want it…

**Warnings**: Language. Nao, you know. U-U

**Disclaimer**: It's three thirty in the morning and I can't tell which way is up. Also, I don't own anything... This message will not make as much sense in the morning as it does right now.

**Genre**: Romance/General

**Pairing**: column!Shipping(1+2+3+5); Sara/Natsuki/Shizuru/Mahya

**Background**: Mai Otome Universe.

**Summary**: "Natsuki could feel herself flush as their hands ran over every part of her body--checking for 'other injuries.'" It was times like this that indicated just how helpless they thought her... not that Natsuki minded. Slight column!Shipping(1+2+3+5)

**Additional Notation**: Well, it's not for the pairing I thought it'd be… or on the day I thought I'd get it done… or as long as—well, you get the picture. One of my fantastic reviewers, _The Xander_, asked me to do a Valentine's Day special and this illegitimate child (aka, bastard) is the result. I know it's not MaiNat, Xander, and I have no earthly (earlly? O.o) idea if this filters your fandom, but since you asked, I had to deliver _something,_ and I doubly hope you come across this! :P It's like a treasure hunt you don't even know you're on! ;)

* * *

Throwing a fit was rather one of Nao Zhang's specialties.

"Say that _again_," the redhead bit out, slamming a fist down on the Column's table, glaring with all her might at the pink-haired Otome standing beside her master on the other side of the room.

Usually, however, the girl had enough sense not to throw them in the middle of an International Council meeting. At least that was what the other Columns had assumed up until that point.

"You. Aren't. Even. A. _Real_. Pillar," Shiho repeated herself slowly, enunciating her words with obvious distain. Her opinion of the Fourth Column's intelligence couldn't have been plainer if the Cardair Otome had spelled it out.

It was hard to say how the argument had started, but there was little doubt as to how it would end. Already Miss Maria was sweeping smoothly towards the front table, brushing past transfixed heads of state and reluctantly fascinated Otome that were pretending desperately not to hold any interest at all in the unfolding events. Even Huit-san's ring wielder seemed torn between reigning in his Meister and prolonging the confrontation, and so in the end did neither.

"Meister Zhang," Mahya, the Fifth Column, snapped like a mousetrap. For her part, the dark-skinned woman seemed in a surly mood from where she sat at the Gakuenchou's right as she stood. "Will you sit _down_ for Founder's _sake_."

"That's another thing!" Nao rounded on her fellow Columns. Sara looked thoroughly exasperated at this point, in contrast with Shizuru's thinly veiled amusement. Natsuki Kruger had shut her eyes, focusing on her breath and probably fighting off a migraine. "Why is it—" The redhead pointed angrily at Mayha, who scowled. "_Why_ is it that you've changed the seating order? Don't think I didn't goddamn notice, either. It's my right to take the right hand of the Gakuenchou: the most _important_ seat. I'm not taking this shit anymore, Blythe! I'm—!"

Whatever else Nao was or wasn't, they would never know. For at the point, the jade-eyed graduate pounded her other fist down on the table to join the first, and sent a glass goblet crashing to the floor, where it scattered into a hundred pieces.

If that had been the end of the event, perhaps Miss Maria would have then simply taken the girl by the ear and dragged her unceremoniously off out of the hall, leaving the others to finish the meeting. However, it seemed that some of the glass shards had gained quite a bit more momentum than others, combined with the added strength of the Otome that knocked them to the floor. With all this factored in, several jagged edges ricocheted off the hardwood at an odd angle, slicing with malevolent force into the resting hand draped off the edge of the table.

A soft inhalation of air echoed around the room as delicate lids retreated over brilliant emerald pools, the owner of both withdrawing her injured hand in shock.

It was like a catalyst.

"Gakuenchou!"

"Natsuki-san!"

The entire room seemed to rise as one, chairs scraping against the floor—some toppling over in their occupant's haste to rise. Moving with superior speed, the three remaining Columns who weren't currently standing stock-still in rare abashment swarmed around the Gakuenchou.

"Is it _supposed_ to bleed like that?"

"Check her pulse."

"Natsuki, let me see your hand."

For such a fast, frantic reaction, their voices were each very controlled and calm; their touches, however, were not. With Sara's back and cape blocking most of what their international audience could see, Natsuki could feel herself flush as their hands ran over every part of her upper body that could be reached—checking for "other injuries." She let out a quick breath, her skin tingling at the touch to her arms, face, stomach, _chest_—

"It was only my hand that was cut, you know," Natsuki murmured, turning her head away in embarrassment as three sets of gem-bright eyes focused intently on her. Oh, she could face down scores of highly important people from highly important countries; that wasn't an issue. But when it came to being positively lavished with adoration by Sara, Shizuru, and Mahya, it was difficult—if not impossible—to convince them not to be so protective of her.

"_Yes_," Sara very well growled, rounding on Nao with murder on her mind. "_Guess_ as to whose fault that would be?"

"Now, now," Miss Maria sniffed, carrying herself gracefully to the raised dais on which the Columns' table was perched. "Do not lower yourselves to her brute idiocy."

"Sure," Nao drawled, glaring, "we wouldn't want tha—HELL!"

Long-since overdue, Miss Maria then took the girl by the ear and dragged her unceremoniously off out of the hall. This was perhaps the best thing for Zhang—though Sara still seemed to be considering tearing after the pair anyway.

"Can we please continue this?"

At Natsuki's even request, the visitors once again took their seats. Sara backtracked to her chair and the Columns sat as well, if agitatedly.

And so, the meeting resumed; but of course, it couldn't go back to what it was.

As though to underscore this (though without really noticing she was doing it at all), Natsuki prompted Yukino-san, who had been speaking before the disruption had occurred, to continue before absently beginning to suck gently on her injured index finger.

The effect was instantaneous.

While it was nothing short of an impossibility to speak while watching Natsuki Kruger doing something so inherently innocent (yet so overwhelmingly sexual), the President of Aries made a good show of trying. The trick to it was that every person in the room heard none of her mistakes (of which there were many)—in fact, they heard nothing at all; except the muted sound of the gorgeous Gakuenchou's nursing. Every now and then her pink tongue would circle her lips, causing Yukino to stutter worse than ever and the various other representatives to swallow audibly.

A loud _crack_ split the air in two, causing Natsuki to pull out her finger with a _pop_ and a startled expression.

"W-what?" She jumped to her feet, staring at Shizuru in shock. Or rather, at the Third Column's hand, which had gripped the table so hard that a large, splintering _crack_ had split the wood from her end of the table down past Natsuki's own area. A red heat had also overtaken the usually placid woman's cheeks and she seemed to be working extra hard not to meet Natsuki's eye.

Now that she thought it over, several people in the room looked to be distinctly flushed. Natsuki considered that to be rather strange; she didn't feel stuffy at all.

"Is something wrong?" she finally felt pressed to ask. Something was going on; something she wasn't catching onto, which was disconcerting, considering she was usually the first to pick up on blunders or faux passes, subtly correcting them without embarrassing the perpetrator.

"Nothing. Is. _Wrong_," Sara bit out, barely suppressed aggression coating her words. Her face was flushed and her eyes sparkled.

Unconsciously, Natsuki took a step back, unused to being addressed in such a tone by any of the Columns—save perhaps Nao, though even when she did, a well-articulated offer (from whichever of her protectors was closest) to drag the girl outside and teach her to speak properly to the Gakuenchou usually resolved it.

It wasn't like this mattered, of course, Natsuki reminded herself, quickly building up a mixture of indignation and fury. She wouldn't be petty about this. She just wouldn't speak to the woman for the rest of the day, that was all.

Sneering back at the blonde, the Second Column turned on her heel to storm from the room, but found herself detained by a warm grip on her wrist.

"Let. Go."

Sara refused. "I'm… I didn't mean it like that. I had no right to speak to you that way."

Natsuki couldn't decide if she wanted to slap the blonde or forgive her more, so she compromised. She knew that when it came to a test of strength in a de-materialized state, any field Otome would have the advantage over her more delicate form. So with this in mind, the bluenette nodded stiffly, waiting for her hand to be released instead of foolishly (and vainly) attempting to pull it free, and turned to the heads of state as though just realizing they where there.

"I think that's all for today," she concluded, a definite edge of dismissal in her tone as she exited the room without waiting for acknowledgement. This coupled with the remaining Columns' silent invitation to "get lost" cleared out the crowd in a hurry, and the fawn-skinned woman wasted no time closed the door after them with her foot.

"She's certainly not happy with me," Sara despaired, crossing her arms over her chest. Her entire posture seemed to cave in on itself at the idea of the Gakuenchou's disapproval weighing heavily on her chest.

"Don't think of that now," Shizuru recommended as they began moving as a unit toward the Columns' exit through with Natsuki had earlier departed. The blonde seemed to pick up on the idea running through her colleges' minds and adopted a hastened stride as well.

"Now… where could Miss Maria have possibly hidden Zhang?" Sara hypothesized, flexing her fingers.

"A rat still smells like a rat even if you wrap it with rose petals," Mahya ground out as she slammed the front door open and strode purposefully across the lawn, her two allies trailing after her.

* * *

_Happy Valentine's Day!_

_؏Aurora_


End file.
